


A Really Big Deal

by hailingstars



Series: good kid [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Last day of school, Parent Pepper Potts, Parent Tony Stark, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-11-17 15:10:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18101018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hailingstars/pseuds/hailingstars
Summary: Tony's first visit to Peter's school as his dad turns into an argument with Flash's father.





	A Really Big Deal

Peter held his fork loose in his hand, eyes going back and forth between Tony and Pepper, who were staring at him from across the dining room table with suspiciously expectant faces. None of the three talked, there wasn’t any idle chat-chit or playful bickering, and maybe that should have been Peter’s first clue that the dinner was a trap. 

By the way they weren’t talking, by the way they were looking at him as though they expected him to start the conversation, he suspected it was a trap set to coax information out of him, and his suspicion was confirmed when Tony finally decided to break the silence and be the first to speak.

“So, is there anything you want to tell us?”

“Umm,” said Peter, fidgeting with his fork. He looked at Pepper, then back at Tony, and tried to figure out how they discovered his secret. “No?” 

Pepper rolled her eyes, as if Peter were the one being dramatic and ridiculous, as if he were the one who organized what Tony had called a proper, family style sit down dinner, just to interrogate someone.

“Tony could learn from your modesty,” said Pepper. “We know about your grades.” 

“My grades?” 

“Did you really think we wouldn’t notice straight A’s?” asked Tony, and Peter loosened up a bit. They hadn’t figured it out yet.

“Oh, that,” said Peter. “It’s no big deal.”

It wasn’t. It was common for him to end semesters like that, and Peter knew that Tony knew this, with all his background checking and helicoptering, so he didn’t understand why it was being turned into a huge event.

Or maybe he did. The overreacting was his primary reason for keeping his reemerging spidey powers a secret, for now, until he could work up the energy to deal with what Peter was sure would be a very dramatic, over the top, response.

“Of course it’s a big deal,” said Tony.

“What Tony means is,” said Pepper. “You’ve had a rough year, and we wouldn’t have blamed you if your grades suffered, but they didn’t and you worked extra hard after missing so much school when you were shot, and that is something truly remarkable.”

Peter couldn’t stop the smile, the rush of pride, because it was one thing when Tony complimented him, but it was another thing entirely when Pepper, who lived much more closely to the ground, to believe something he did earned praise.

“And it deserves celebrating,” said Tony.  “So, what do you want?” 

“Oh I don’t need –“

“Don’t be ridiculous. All the parenting books say I need to reward good behavior.”

“You read _parenting books_?”

There was something about that idea that was horrifying. Tony, deeply engrossed, with words meant to teach him how to deal with Peter. Tony ignored the question.

“A party with all your friends? How about a car?”

“Tony he isn’t even old enough to drive,” said Pepper. “Just think about it for a while. Maybe there’s somewhere you want to go on vacation this summer when we’re done in California.”

Peter looked at her, and when it was clear he was confused, she turned to Tony.

“You haven’t told him yet?”

“Well, no,” said Tony. He looked guilty, so Peter prepared himself for bad news. “Kid, uh, there’s some SI business I’ve been putting on hold, that can’t wait anymore. So, we’ll be spending some time at the Malibu house this summer.

Peter looked down at his half-eaten dinner. There were a lot of bad feelings rolled up in what Tony just said. The first being all the guilt that came with the realization that Tony and Pepper were putting business on hold to keep him in school, to make it possible for him to get those straight A’s they were now going out of their way to celebrate. Then there was being away from the city, and away from Ned, when they already had their summer planned out, and lastly, there was Spider-Man. 

He’d yet to make a reappearance since his powers had, and he thought the summer would be the perfect opportunity.

“Just a month, tops,” said Tony.

Peter tried to keep the disappointment off his face and offered a shakey smile. “Great. I love California.”

Tony narrowed his eyes at him in a way that made Peter believe he wasn’t buying what he was selling. 

“Really,” said Peter, trying to reassure him.

And it wasn’t exactly a lie. He did like the house out in Malibu, and learned to love it, even, over Spring Break, but he couldn’t help to think that while Tony and Pepper were busy with SI, Peter would be spending his days alone in a big, empty, house.

They finished up with dinner, chit-chat and playful bickering resumed, and after Peter was shooed away for just trying to help clear the table, Peter returned to his bedroom. He went straight to an oversized beanbag chair that sat in front of his TV and grabbed one of his last functioning game controllers.

The rest of them were broken and hidden in his closet, crushed by strength and no doubt evidence for his parents to find out his powers were back. They were redeveloping in the same way they had occurred the first time, tricky to control and unpredictable.

He switched his game on, was extra careful with his last controller, and resolved, after the fuss that was made over his grades, to keep his powers a secret as long as he possibly could. 

* * *

The last day of school was loud and chaotic. 

Grades were already calculated, teachers were mentally on their summer vacations, and students, for the most part, were allowed to do whatever they wanted as long as they showed up to their classes and stayed still long enough for attendance. 

Being there was just a formality, and one most of them didn’t mind. 

It was the last chance to be around friends who weren’t friend enough to see outside of school, and for Peter, his last chance to be around Ned before taking off to California for a month tops. 

“But dude,” said Ned. He sat sideways in the desk next to Peter. “You can’t go to California. The Star Wars comes out next weekend.”

“I know, Ned,” said Peter. It was a tradition he loved, and one that would be impossible for him to forget. They always saw new Star Wars movies together, on opening night. “But there isn’t anything I can do. Tony has business, and there’s no way he’s letting me stay by myself for that long.” 

“You mean Tony Stark doesn’t trust the poor orphan boy in his luxury penthouse while he’s gone? That’s shocking.”

Flash sat in the desk behind them with a Nintendo Switch in his hands and his ears where they didn’t belong. The sounds coming from the Switch indicated that he was playing Peter’s favorite game, the one he was the best at, and before he could send a warning look to Ned, he already had his mouth open and words were coming from it.

“Peter can beat level fifty-two in under five minutes,” said Ned.

“Bullshit,” said Flash. He didn’t take his eyes off the game until it made the terrible, a life was lost, sound effect. He and Peter stared at each other, then Flash pushed the game into his hands. “Prove it.” 

Peter took it with a shrug and started the game. His reflexes were incredibly sharp, curtesy of his powers, and his fingers made fast work of the joystick and the buttons. He was almost there, to the end of level fifty-two, when Flash must have realized he was going to do exactly what Ned had said and uttered a comment regarding his aunt May and questioning the amount of money she was paid to sell her nephew off to Tony Stark and leave the city.

A ridiculous statement, one that had no truth, but still punched Peter in the gut. His hands tightened, and the Nintendo Switch got crushed under them, his hand going straight inside the plastic.

“What the fuck?” shouted Flash.

Their Chemistry choose that moment to lift his head from his daydreamers. His eyes went from the broken game, to Flash’s angry face, to Peter, before he pointed at the door.

“You two. Principal’s office.”

* * *

 

Parents were called, and Peter sat in a chair across from the Principal’s desk, quietly freaking out. Flash’s father was the first to arrive. He sat next to Flash, who shrink into his chair at his arrival and lost that aura of obnoxiousness that normally surrounded him.

After a few minutes of tense, uncomfortable silence, Peter figured got it. He found himself wilting his own chair as Mr. Thompson gave him side-eye. Sometimes he was more upfront with his glares. He checked his watch often. He made loud sighs, and finally, after a rather loud one, he broke the silence.

“Can we get on with this?” he asked, turning his glare on Principal Morita. 

“It’s usually protocol to wait for both sets of parents to arrive before we begin,” said Morita. He was calm, routine, as if dealing with difficult was not out of the ordinary for him. “Especially when it involves something serious like property damage.”

Mr. Thompson replied with a scoff. “As I’m sure it’s protocol for Stark to be under the delusion that he can keep the world waiting simply because he flies around in a metal suit.”

“Did I hear my name?”

Tony had his head poked in the door, and he must’ve noticed Peter was tense. He gave his shoulder a squeeze as he took the seat next to Peter, placing himself between him and Flash’s dad. Panic slipped away. Relief replaced it, and Peter was able to sit up a little bit straighter.

“I would like the record to show I was under that delusion way before I was Iron Man.”

Principal Morita looked between the two men, and their sons, and Peter couldn’t figure out who he pitied most. After getting a glimpse of Flash, he decided it was definitely him. Peter didn’t think it was possible for him to disappear more than he already had, but he seemed to be getting smaller and smaller the more seconds that went by.

“Let’s just get this over with,” said Morita. He motioned to the broken Nintendo Switch laying on his desk, then looked at Peter. “I’m assuming this was an accident. Do you want to explain what happened, Peter?” 

“I was trying to get a high score,” said Peter. He thought about what happened next, about Flash’s dumb comment about May, then forgot about it. “And I lost.” His eyes found Tony’s. He knew what admitting this meant for his secret. “So, I was frustrated, and I guess I just forgot my strength.”

Peter watched a light, some warmth and some pride flicker in Tony’s eyes, and knew the man understood. Watching his expression change like that, Peter couldn’t remember why he’d been keeping it a secret, anyway. 

“Pete, that’s great news,” said Tony, and they continued looking at each other for a few more seconds, smiling, before they realized they had an audience. Tony cleared his throat. “We just really value physical strength in our family.”

Mr. Thompson frowned and glared, and the Principal paused, possibly to process, but then decided it was best to move on. 

“Well, I think that settles it then. It was an accident, so as long as the property is paid for,” said Morita, aiming a look at Tony, “which I’m sure isn’t an issue, we can move right along to our summer vacations.”

“I’ll have someone write you a check,” said Tony, to Mr. Thompson.

“I don’t want your money, Stark,” said Mr. Thompson. “I want him expelled.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“He can’t just destroy my son’s property and get off without receiving any punishment just because he’s Tony Stark’s charity case.”

“Dad really it’s okay, he’s going to pay –“ 

“Be quiet, Eugene,” said Mr. Thompson. The tone was silencing, and it hadn’t been meant for Peter, but made him look down at his shoes anyway. “Think your grades are going to cut it for Harvard with this freak running up the curve each semester? You’re not intelligent enough to compete.”

“He’s got more intelligence than you, apparently,” said Tony. He gripped the armrest on his seat, and Peter wondered just how much he was holding back. “I think the kids need to leave the room.”

“Anything you have to say can be said in front of my son." 

Tony didn’t look at Mr. Thompson. He kept his grip on the armrest, his veins popping out of his hands, and looked straight ahead at the Principal. “All the books say the kid shouldn’t see me lose my temper.”

Both he and Flash were dismissed, reluctantly, but that didn’t stop the shouting from being heard through the very thin high school walls.

Tony berated Mr. Thompson for calling Peter a freak and trying to get him kicked out of school just to make his own kid shine brighter. Mr. Thompson yelled back, shouting that Tony didn’t know how to discipline his child and that Peter shouldn’t be allowed at a school like Midtown, that he needed to be put in a more advanced school.

Peter wasn’t worried. Nobody told Tony what to do and actually got their way. Unless they were Pepper Potts.

He looked at Flash, and for the first time, saw through the lies. He was suddenly all the more thankful for Tony, and slightly ashamed that he was ever annoyed or embarrassed by his making a big deal out of every little good thing he did. Peter vowed to never take that for granted again. 

“I’m sorry I broke your game,” said Peter. 

“Yeah, well,” said Flash. “You should be.”

Peter sighed, didn’t know what he was expecting, then jumped in shock as the door to the Principal’s office flew open. Tony marched out, put a hand on Peter’s shoulder and directed him out of the administration office.

“We came to a compromise,” he told him. “You’re suspended for the rest of the year, and we don’t have to pay for the game.” 

“…but today is the last day.”

“Yep,” said Tony. “We’re outta here, buddy. How about milkshakes?”

“Milkshakes sound amazing.” 

* * *

Later that evening, Peter attempted to beat level fifty-two in under five minutes again. He was alone, in his bedroom, and so he was only proving it to himself, but that didn’t matter. He still grinned in triumph when he cleared it, with seconds to spare, and felt like he could retire from the game in peace. 

When he stood from his beanbag chair, and turned, he found Tony standing in his doorway. 

“I think we should still give Flash money for a new game,” said Peter, as a way of greeting. He still felt about breaking it, and the chaos that happened afterward.

“If that’s what you want,” said Tony, walking further into his bed. He beckoned at Peter’s couch and motioned for him to take a seat. “Let’s talk, okay?” 

Once they were both seated on the couch, Tony continued. 

“So guess what I did today, besides yelling at one of your peer’s fathers in the Principal’s office.” 

Peter laughed. “Ummm I dunno.”

“I figured out what you wanted to celebrate your grades.” 

“Oh my god,” said Peter, with a mock groan. “There’s a car outside, isn’t there?”

“No, I’m saving that for your sweet sixteen,” said Tony. “I spent a few hours with Ned’s mother, convincing her to let us kidnap him for a month.”

_“What?”_

“She agreed, of course, once I told her how much of a help it’d be to have someone around for you to hang out with while –“

He was cut off by Peter knocking the air of him with a forceful hug. It was exactly what he wanted, even if he hadn’t thought of it himself.

“Thank you.”

Tony closed his hands around Peter’s arms, and pushed him back, so he could look him in the eye again. 

“You didn’t even let me get to the best part.” 

He let go of him, slipped his hand inside a pocket in his suit jacket, and pulled out four tickets. They were for the actual, red carpet premiere of the new Star Wars movie. Peter blinked at them, thinking they might disappear, and wondered when Tony started keeping track of when popular movies came out.

“…how did you know?”

“You and Ned always see Star Wars movies on release day,” said Tony. “You’ve said it more than once.”

This was spoken like it was no big deal, like it wouldn’t matter to Peter that Tony listened when he talked and remembered what was said and then went out of his way to prove it. It would have meant the same to Peter if they were ordinary tickets, to an ordinary theater. 

Peter hugged him again, buried his face in his chest, and took a deep breath so he wouldn’t start crying. There had been enough of that this last year. This time, Tony hugged him back, held him close, and after what was possible the worst year of Peter’s life, the world felt like it would be okay.

They sat like that, for a couple of minutes, until Tony started to shift around.

“Pepper is waiting for us with dinner,” said Tony. “Wanna let go of me now?”

Peter tried, but his arms wouldn’t separate from Tony’s suit jacket. “I can’t. I’m stuck.” 

Tony laughed, kissed the top of his head, and a few minutes later, after relearning his powers enough to unstick, Peter was able to let go. 

They joined Pepper in the dining room, and she already had the table set up with takeout from one of Peter’s favorite restaurants, because they _knew_ his favorite foods without having to ask. 

And as Peter sat down at the table, he figured Pepper had been right the day before. He did have an unbearably rough year. He lost a lot, and nothing could make up for that.

But they were a family who laughed at each other, cried with each other, and had proper, family style sit-down dinners that were actually enjoyed. Peter had a family, again, and he was secure that nothing short of death could separate him from this one.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I wrote this one as sort of a transition between this part of the story and the next one, then realized it would be really fun to do a California Part 2, with Ned this time and more fluffy than angsty, so that's going to be the next one in the series!! A six-part, fluff piece coming before Things Get Real again. Hope you enjoyed this one!!


End file.
